Bevel gear finishing machine



Aug. 3, 1954 J. J. osPLAcK 2,685,234

BEVEL GEAR FINISHING MACHINE Filed May 26. 1950 2 Sheets-Sheet l mvv "n,

INVENTOR Aug. 3, 1954 J. J. osPLAcK BEVEL GEAR FINrsHING MACHINE 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 Filed May 26, 1950 NVENTOR Patented ug. 3, 1954 BEVEL GEAR FINISHING MACHINE Joseph J. Osplack, Detroit, Mich., assignor to Vinco Corporation, Detroit, Mich., a corporation of Michigan Application May 26, 1950, Serial No. 164,523

(Cl. StL-1.6)

3 Claims. l

This invention relates to a method and apparatus for finishing bevel gears. In particular, it relates to a method of removing tool marks and other imperfections from a roughed-out bevel gear and bringing that gear to finished dimensions by lapping, burnishing or shaving it with a crown gear cut to the form of the theoretical spherical rack of the finished bevel gear, and to apparatus for putting that method into practice.

A principal advantage of the method of my invention is that a crown-gear-shaped iinishlng tool can be accurately made to its exact theoretical shape by simple machining methods since the flanks of a tooth of such a gear are either plane or conical surfaces.

Ordinarily, the ratio of the pitch circumference of a conjugate counterpart crown gear, designed to mate with a bevel gear to be nished, to the circular pitch of the crown gear will not be integral. To meet this difficulty, either an oversized tooth may be left on the crown gear or a number of contiguous teeth may be omitted, leaving a wide relieved space, in the manner illustrated for a bevel gear checking master in the Beam and Stapleton application. Serial No. 674,152, led June 3, 1946-.

It will be apparent that, when such a crown gear tool is rolled with a mating bevel geary there will be along the pitch circle only rolling' contact between them and, hence, no nishing action will take place on the tooth flanks of the bevel gear at their pitch line. In order to overcome this diiiiculty and to provide for a complete nishing of the flanks of the bevel gear, I have provided for an additional motion of the bevel gear being rolled in contact with the crown gear tool. I find that this additional motion is preierably a rapid, reciprocatory motion of limited extent along a line making an angle with the pitch plane of the crown gear approximately one half that made by a line perpendicular to the axis of rotation of the bevel gear, though other directions of reciprocation may be used. What is needed is to impart a relative motion between the flanks of the bevel gear and the flanks of the crown gear tool other than a rolling motion at the pitch circle.

My invention is explained in detail below with reference to the accompanying drawings in which:

Fig. l is an elevation of an apparatus for carrying out the method of my invention;

Fig. 2 is a section taken on the line 2--2 of Fig. l;

Fig. 3 is a section taken on the line 3 3 oi Fig. 2; Fig. 4 is a section taken on the line 4wd of Fig. 3; and

Fig. 5 is an end elevation of the apparatus illustrated in Fig. 1 showing a supporting frame therefor.

Referring now to the drawings, a bevel gear to be iinished B` is journalled in a holder assembly l which is mounted on a vibrator plate 2. The holder assembly I comprises a spacing collar 3, a bearing and braking collar 5 and a retaining collar 6 about the shaft ll of bevel gear B. The bearing and braking collar 5 is aiiixed to the vibrator plate 2 in such a way that the angular relation between the axis of shaft l?. and vibrator plate 2 may be adjusted by rotation of holder assembly I about a pivot at Y. Retaining collar 6 is locked about the outer end of shaft 4 to prevent axial movement thereof in bearing collar 5 in conjunction with spacing collar 3. Braking collar 5 is provided with a clamp bolt 'i' by means of which an adjustable drag can be placed on the free rotation of shaft il.

Vibrator' plate 2 is mounted slidably in the direction of its longitudinal axis in a vibrator plate guide 8 which is ailixed on adjustable U- shaped bracket I. Bracket Ill is mounted on a movable plate i) by means of a single clamp bolt 25 about which, when loosened, bracket i0 may be pivoted. Movable plate 9, provided with a pair oi parallel slots 9', is mounted on Xed plate 2l provided with a pair oi parallel slots 2l' perpendicular to slots 9' by means oi the four clamp bolts 28, each passing through one of the slots in each plate. Fixed plate 27 is carried by frame 2S. By means of this arrangement the space relation of gear B to frame 29 is universally adjustable with the limits of travel aiorded by slots e and 21.

Vibrator motor Il is carried by vibrator plate guide 8. An eccentric vibrator roller I2 is carried on the shaft of motor I I, held in engagement with one side of an aperture in vibrator plate 2 by a spring-loaded, impact slide I3 carried in that plate.

A crown gear tool I4 is journalled in frame 2e by means of bearing I5 and sha-it It. The teeth of crown gear tool i4 are shaped to coincide with the theoretical spherical rack of the bevel gear B, wide space I 4 being provided to allow for Y; the non-integral pitch circumference ratio oi gear lli. Gear Il is carried by the lower end of shaft I 5 and engages reciprocating rack I8. Rack it is slidably mounted in guides Iii affixed to frame 2S and connected to crank pin disk 2i by a connecting rod 20. Disk 2l is mounted on and rotated by speed reduction drive 22 which is rotated by motor 23. Drive 22 and motor 2t are, in turn, mounted on frame 29.

The effect of the rotation of crank pin disk 2l is to impart a reciprocatory motion to rack I8 and thus to rotate crown gear tool I@ in alternate directions. The length of travel of reciprocating rack i8 and hence the amount of angular motion imparted to crown gear Il! is controlled by the location of adjustable crank pin 24 by which connecting rod 2i) is afxed to crank pin disk 2l. This adjustable crank pin 24 is carried by threaded block 25 which engages screw 39 journalled radially in disk 2l. Rotation of screw 39 adjusts the effective throw of crank pin disk 2i. This enables an appropriate amount of rotation to be imparted to crown gear tool lli to iinish equally every tooth ank of bevel gear B, no matter what its diameter'.

Referring now especially to the geometrical relations illustrated in Fig. 1, it will be apparent that for a given bevel gear B, there is just one theoretical spherical rack which determines the dimensions of crown gear tool M. Having constructed crown gear tool iii to meet these theoretical considerations, the distance OX is determined by the distance from O, the pitch cone apex to X, a point on the pitch circle of bevel gear B. Moreover, the pitch cone angle of bevel gear B determines the angle N. It is necessary, therefore, to adjust the position of vibrator plate 2 on frame 29 so that pivot point Y wiil be located at the appropriate place determined by the distance OX and the angle N.

In order that the dimension of the finished gear be theoretically correct, the adjustment of f Moreover, the angular adjustment of vibrator plate guide 3 on frame 29 about pivot bolt 26 is preferably such that the angle between the longitudinal axis of guide 8 and the pitch plane of crown gear ifi is one-half the angle formed by that pitch plane and a perpendicular to the axis of shaft 4.

In operation, motor 23 and vibrator motor Il are turned on and the alternate rotary motion of crown gear tool id carries bevel gear B through a complete rotation or more in each direction for each complete revolution of crank pin disk 2i. At the same time, vibrator roller l2 vengaged between spring-loaded, impact slide i3 and the vibrator plate 2 imparts a vibratory motion to bevel gear B in the direction of the longitudinal axis of vibrator plate guide 8.

Assuming that the nnishing operation to be performed on bevel gear B is one of lapping, crown gear tool lli will be made of cast iron and a cutting compound smeared on its surface. Under the action of vibrator motor li, this cutting compound iinishes the whole tooth surface of bevel gear B as it rolls with the teeth of crown gear tool ifi. The finishing operation is coinplete as soon as the teeth of bevel gear B are i dressed down to a point where spring-loaded, impact slide i3 is no longer depressed by vibrator roller i2 at the bottom of its travel. The rate of iinishing can be regulated by adjustment of clamp screw 'i on brake collar E.

If the finishing operation desired was a burnishing one, the crown gear tool M would be hardened and ground. Jewelers rouge or other Suitable burnishing compound would be employed in lieu of cutting compound.

If the finishing operation desired was that of shaving, the teeth of crown gear M would be serrated as the teeth of a iile. The angle of these serrations would be that to obtain optimum cutting as a nle from the relative motion between bevel gear B and crank gear tool i4.

While I have described the adjustment of the direction of the vibration to be imparted to bevel gear B in what I believe to be the optimum direction for the accurate finishing of bevel gears by pivot point Y, together with an appropriate adjustinent of the space relation of vibrator plate guide 8 in relation to trarne 29, a variety of other directions of vibration can be selected. For example, the angle of vibrator plate guide 8 can be adjusted parallel to the axis of holder assembly l so that the direction or" vibration imparted to bevel gear B is along its axis of rotation or these parts may be adjusted so that the longitudinal airis of vibrator plate guide 8 is perpendicular to the axis of rotation of bevel gear B and the vibratory motion imparted to bevel gear B` will therefore, be one substantially of rotation about the apex of its pitch cone at O. The essential criterion of adjustment for vibratory direction is that it affords other than rolling relative motion between crown gear tool Ul and the bevel gear B at the pitch circle.

While I have described my invention in terms of the detailed embodiment illustrated, which is especially7 suited for the finishing of straight bevel gears, it will be apparent to anyone skilled in the art that my method is equally applicable to bevel gears having other tooth forms. Thus I do not wish to be limited to the details of the machine selected for illustration, but rather by the scope of the appended claims.

claim:

1. .ir bevel gear iinishing machine comprising a frame, a tool in the shape of the theoretical spherical raci; of the gear to be iinished rotatably mounted on said frame, guide means carried by said frame, a plate slidably mounted on said means, journal means mounted on said plate for holding the gear to be nished rotatably in mesh with said tool, means for rotating said gear and said tool together, a motor mounted on said frame, an opening in said plate, a block slidably mounted in said opening, spring means urging said block in a direction away from said tool, and an eccentric driven by said motor engaged between said block and the end of said opening away from said tool.

2. A process of nishing bevel gears using a finishing tool in the form of the theoretical spherical rack of the gear to be finished in which said gear is given a rapid vibratory motion in a direction relative to said tool along the line bisecting the angle between the pitch plane of said tool and a line perpendicular to the axis of said gear.

3. The process of claim 2 in which the iinishing tool is rotated in mesh with the gear to be finished alternately in opposite directions through arcs of less than 360.

References Cited in the le of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS Number Name Date 618,978 Beale Feb. '7, 1899 .1,398,939 Olson Nov. 22, 1921 2,11l,9fl5 Drummond Mar. 15, 1938 2,112,996 Perkins Apr. 5, 1938 2,232,4G8 Shaw Feb. 18, 1941 2,291,537 Drummond July 28, 1942 2,309,530 Perkins Jan. 26, 1943 2,499,157 Sanborn Feb. 28, 1950 OTHER REFERENCES A Treatise on Gear Wheels, George B. Grant, 17th edition, 1929. 

